Faraj Suleiman

The acclaimed Palestinian singer, pianist, and composer plays his long awaited first UAE show

Faraj Suleiman takes the stage with a full band for his UAE debut, delivering an engaging performance that moves between intricate, playful rhythms and deeply introspective moments. His music blends jazz, rock, classical, and Arabic influences into a sound that is unmistakably his own. This time, he brings his songs to life, performing selections from his albums, including his breakthrough album Better Than Berlin, and his latest release, Maryam. 

Introspective and cinematic, the album Maryam captures the stark contrasts of life over the past two years. It begins with themes of love and romance, with the first tracks radiating life and energy, and later evolves into a darker expression of grief and transformation. Maryam conveys a spectrum of loss, from romantic to physical to existential, balancing its somber themes with moments of tenderness, enriched by folk-inspired instrumentation and warm vocal accompaniments. The melancholy is tangible, yet there’s a warmth and romance that lingers, making it both enigmatic and relatable. The music reflects the realities of our times without revealing too many details of the context, allowing the album to resonate across borders.

Faraj Suleiman

Faraj Suleiman is a prolific Palestinian composer, pianist and singer. His work bridges Arabic music and jazz, placing the Eastern piano at the heart of his compositions. To date, Suleiman has released a range of albums, spanning solo piano pieces, quartets, quintets, and arrangements for choirs and full orchestras. Faraj has performed at the prestigious EFG London Jazz Festival twice, in 2019 and 2024, showcasing his talent at one of Europe’s largest jazz festivals, taking place across numerous renowned venues in London. Faraj Suleiman's 2018 performance at the Montreux Jazz Festival marked a significant milestone in his career. Faraj Suleiman composed the original score for 200 Meters (2020), a film by Ameen Nayfeh that was selected as Jordan's entry for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film. As well as the soundtrack for Je te ferai un film (2022) by Amani Jaafar, Alam (2021) and Maradona’s Legs (2018) by Feras Khoury. In 2020, Suleiman collaborated with world famous graffiti artist, Banksy, by recording musical tracks in the “Walled-off Hotel” in Bethlehem, Palestine. The music played continuously on a self-playing piano throughout the opening hours of the exhibition.